CHAPTER II.

**The Apostasy Predicted**.

1. In proceeding with our present inquiry we accept as demonstrated facts the establishment of the Church of Christ under the Savior's personal administration and the rapid growth of the Church in the early period of the apostolic ministry.

2. A question of the utmost importance is: Has the Church of Christ, thus authoritatively established, maintained an organized existence upon the earth from the apostolic age to the present? Other questions are suggested by the first. If the Church has continued as an earthly organization, where lies the proof or evidence of legitimate succession in priestly authority, and which among the multitude of contending sects or churches of the present day is the actual possessor of the holy priesthood originally committed to the Church by the Christ, its founder?

3. Again, have the spiritual gifts and graces by which the early Church was characterized and distinguished been manifest on earth through the centuries that have passed since the meridian of time; and if so, in which of the numerous churches of these modern times do we find such signs following the professed believers?--(See Mark 16:17.)

4. We affirm that with the passing of the so-called apostolic age the Church gradually drifted into a condition of apostasy, whereby succession in the priesthood was broken; and that the Church, as an earthly organization operating under divine direction and having authority to officiate in spiritual ordinances, ceased to exist.

5. If therefore the Church of Christ is to be found upon the earth to-day it must have been re-established by divine authority; and the holy priesthood must have been restored to the world from which it was lost by the apostasy of the Primitive Church.--(See Note 1, end of chapter.)

6. We affirm that the great apostasy was foretold by the Savior Himself while He lived as a Man among men, and by His inspired prophets both before and after the period of His earthly probation. And further, we affirm that a rational interpretation of history demonstrates the fact of this great and general apostasy.

7. Before we take up in detail the specific predictions referred to, and the evidence of their dread fulfilment, we may profitably devote brief attention to certain general considerations.

8. Respecting the foreknowledge of God, let it not be said that divine omniscience is of itself a determining cause whereby events are inevitably brought to pass. A mortal father who knows the weaknesses and frailties of his son may by reason of that knowledge sorrowfully predict the calamities and sufferings awaiting his wayward boy. He may foresee in that son's future a forfeiture of blessings that could have been won, loss of position, self-respect, reputation and honor; even the dark shadows of a felon's cell and the sight of a drunkard's grave may appear in the saddening visions of that fond father's soul; yet, convinced by experience of the impossibility of bringing about that son's reform, he foresees the dread developments of the future, and he finds but sorrow and anguish in his knowledge. Can it be said that the father's foreknowledge is a cause of the son's sinful life? The son, perchance, has reached his maturity; he is the master of his own destiny; a free agent unto himself. The father is powerless to control by force or to direct by arbitrary command; and while he would gladly make any effort or sacrifice to save his son from the fate impending, he fears for what seems to be an awful certainty. But surely that thoughtful, prayerful, loving parent does not contribute to the son's waywardness because of his knowledge. To reason otherwise would be to say that a neglectful father, who takes not the trouble to study the nature and character of his son, who shuts his eyes to sinful tendencies, and rests in careless indifference as to the probable future, will by his very heartlessness be benefiting his child, because his lack of forethought cannot operate as a contributory cause to dereliction.

9. Our Heavenly Father has a full knowledge of the nature and dispositions of each of His children, a knowledge gained by long observation and experience in the past eternity of our primeval childhood; a knowledge compared with which that gained by earthly parents through mortal experience with their children is infinitesimally small. By reason of that surpassing knowledge, God reads the future of child and children, of men individually and of men collectively as communities and nations; He knows what each will do under given conditions, and sees the end from the beginning. His foreknowledge is based on intelligence and reason; He foresees the future as a state which naturally and surely will be; not as one which must be because He has arbitrarily willed that it shall be.

10. But, it may be argued that in the illustrative instance given above--that of the earthly parent and the wayward son,--the father had not the power to change the sad course of sin whereby his son is hastening to ignominy and destruction; while the omnipotent Father can save if He will. In reply this is to be said: The Father of souls has endowed His children with the divine birthright of free agency; He does not and will not control them by arbitrary force; He impels no man toward sin; He compels none to righteousness. Unto man has been given freedom to act for himself; and, associated with this independence, is the fact of strict responsibility and the assurance of individual accountability. In the judgment with which we shall be judged, all the conditions and circumstances of our lives shall be considered. The inborn tendencies due to heredity, the effect of environment whether conducive to good or evil, the wholesome teachings of youth, or the absence of good instruction--these and all other contributory elements must be taken into account in the rendering of a just verdict as to the soul's guilt or innocence. Nevertheless, the divine wisdom makes plain what will be the result with given conditions operating on known natures and dispositions of men; while every individual is free to choose good or evil within the limits of the many conditions existing and operative..--(See Note 2, end of chapter.)

11. Another matter worthy of thought in the present connection is this: Is the fact of the great apostasy,--the virtual overthrow and destruction of the Church established by Jesus Christ,--to be regarded as an instance of failure in the Lord's plans? Is it a case of defeat in which Satan was victor over Christ? Consider the following. What mortal has yet measured the standard by which Omniscience gages success or failure? Who dares affirm that what man hails as triumph or deplores as defeat will be so accounted when tested by the principles of eternal reckoning?

12. The history of the world abounds with instances of the temporary triumph of evil, of justice seemingly miscarried, of divine plans for the time being frustrated, of God's purposes opposed and their consummation delayed.

13. We read of the Lord's covenant with Israel? Unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob He declared that their descendants should be a people chosen for His special service among the nations. Through that lineage the Savior of mankind was to be born; in the posterity of Abraham all nations of the earth were to be blessed. Blessings beyond the heart of man to conceive, beyond the mind of man to comprehend, were promised on condition of loyal allegiance to Him who proclaimed Himself their God and their King. Moreover the Lord predicted calamity and suffering, and individual affliction and national disgrace, if Israel departed from the service of Jehovah and yielded to the enticements of their heathen neighbors who knew not God. Think you that the Lord was ignorant of the course His people would choose? Did He fail to foresee that Israel would follow the evil way, forfeiting the blessings and reaping the harvest of sorrow? Jehovah's plans failed not, though the realization of the blessings so abundantly promised has been long delayed. Equally forceful with the prediction of calamity in case of sin, was the promise of eventual restoration to favor. The dispersion of Israel already accomplished, was to be followed by the gathering of Israel now in progress.--(See the Author's "Articles of Faith," lectures 17 and 18.)

14. What would have been the world's verdict as to the success or failure of the mission of the Christ, had a vote been taken at the time of the crucifixion? Seemingly His enemies had triumphed; He who proclaimed Himself the Messiah, the Son of God, the resurrection and the life, over whom death could not prevail, had suffered the fate of malefactors, and His body was in the tomb. But the verdict of the centuries, which is the verdict of the eternities to come, acclaims that "failure" as the greatest triumph of the ages, the victory of victories.

15. Even so with the Church. For a season the powers of evil triumphed, and the spirit of apostasy ruled. But beyond the darkness of the spiritual night the glorious dawn of the restoration was seen in prophetic vision, and both the night with its horrors, and the awakening day with its splendor, were foreseen and foretold.

16. In our study of the predictions of the apostasy as embodied in scripture and of their realization as attested by later history, we shall recognize two distinct phases or stages of the progressive falling away as follows:

(1) Apostasy _from_ the Church; and (2) The apostasy _of_ the Church.

17. In the first stage we have to deal with the forsaking of the truth and severance from the Church by individuals, at times few, at other times many. Such conditions can scarcely be considered otherwise than as natural and inevitable. History fails to present any example of great undertakings upon which multitudes enter with enthusiasm, and from which many do not desert. Unless such cases of individual abandonment are so numerous as to show the operation of some vital cause of disaffection, we would not need the authority of divine prediction and inspired prophecy to explain the occurrence. We find, however, that apostasy from the Primitive Church was widespread and general, and that the causes leading to such a condition were of vital significance.

18. In the second of the two stages already specified we are confronted with conditions of far greater import than those attending individual secession from the Church; for here we find the Church sinking to the degraded level of a human institution, with plan of organization and mode of operation foreign to the constitution of the original, without priesthood or authority to officiate in spiritual ordinances, and devoid of the gifts and graces with which the Savior endowed His Church at the time of its establishment. In short, we find the Church itself apostate, boasting of temporal power, making its own laws, teaching its own dogmas, preserving only a form of godliness, while denying the power thereof.--(See II Tim. 3:1-6.)

**Specific Predictions of the Apostasy**.

19. The Lord foresaw the great and general departure from the principles of righteousness, and from the beginning knew that men would set up their own forms of worship, wrongfully claiming divine authority for the same. Through the mouths of His chosen prophets He has repeatedly predicted the inevitable event.--(See note 3, end of chapter.)

20. Among the prophecies antedating the birth of Christ the following may be noted. Isaiah beheld in vision the condition of the earth in the era of spiritual darkness, a period in which all classes would be involved in a general condition of unrighteousness, a time when the world of mankind would be in a helpless and practically hopeless condition. He pictures the earth mourning and languishing in desolation and assigns the reason for the sad condition as follows: "The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant."--(Isaiah 24:5; read verses 1 to 6 inclusive.)

21. It may be thought that this prophecy has reference to a violation of the law of Moses under which ancient Israel lived. Let it be remembered, however, that the Mosaic law is nowhere called an everlasting covenant. The covenant between the Lord and Abraham antedated the giving of the law by four hundred and thirty years, and, as pointed out by Paul,--(Galatians 3:17; read the entire chapter.) In his epistle to the Galatians, whom he designates as foolish because of their confusing the law of Moses and the gospel of Christ, the law could not nullify the earlier covenant the fulfillment of which could come only through Christ. The "law," by which the inspired apostle plainly means the Mosaic statutes, was but a preparation for the "faith," by which latter expression the gospel as revealed by Christ is clearly intended. "But before faith came," says Paul, "we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Jesus Christ. And if ye be Christ's then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."--(Verses 23-29.)

22. It is evident from the tenor of the entire chapter, that while the gospel was preached unto Abraham, and covenant made with him relating to the coming of the Messiah through his posterity, the gospel did not abide with Israel, and this because of transgression;--(Verse 19.) but in lieu thereof the Mosaic law was instituted as a disciplinary measure, temporary in character, destined to be superseded by the gospel of Christ, and assuredly not an everlasting covenant. On the other hand, the blood of Christ, through the shedding of which the atoning sacrifice was wrought, is distinctively called "the blood of the everlasting covenant,"--(Hebrews 13:20.)

23. It is evident then that Isaiah's fateful prophecy relating to the breaking of the everlasting covenant could have no reference to a departure from the Mosaic requirements, but must refer to a then future condition of apostasy following the establishment of the everlasting covenant. Moreover, part of the great prediction, referring to the burnings and widespread calamities,--(See Isaiah 24:6.) yet awaits its complete fulfillment.

24. Another prediction applicable to the period when there should be no Church of Christ to be found, and when, in consequence there should be lamentation and suffering, is that of Amos. "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."--(Amos 8:11, 12.)

25. Christ instructed His followers in terms at once direct and conclusive, as to the apostasy then impending. In reply to certain inquiries concerning the signs by which His second advent would be heralded, He said: "Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many."--(Matt. 24:4, 5.) Then He told of approaching wars and political disturbances, and added: "And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved."--(Verses 10-13. See note 4, end of chapter.)

26. Further specifying the conditions incident to the growing apostasy, Christ declared to His disciples: "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake."--(Verse 9.) And again: "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth; behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not."--(Verses 23-26.)

27. After the departure of Christ from earth His apostles continued to warn the people of the darkness to come. In that memorable address to the elders of Ephesus, when, as he told them, they were looking upon his face for the last time, Paul reminded his hearers of the instructions he had previously given them, and then charged them with this solemn warning: "For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them."--(Acts 20:29, 30; read verses 17 to 31 incl.)

28. Not only would outsiders ingratiate themselves with the saints for purposes of selfish gain,--wolves entering in, and not sparing the flock,--but schisms and divisions were imminent; and these dissensions were to come through some then present,--men who would aspire to leadership, and who would set up their own doctrines, thus drawing disciples away from the Church and unto themselves.

29. The same apostle warns Timothy of the approaching apostasy, and refers to some of the erroneous teachings that would be impressed upon misguided people,--teachings which he calls "doctrines of devils." He admonishes Timothy to put the brethren in remembrance of these things, as is becoming in a good minister of Christ, "nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine." Note the inspired prediction: "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth."--(I Tim. 4:1-3. See Note 5, end of chapter.)

30. In a second epistle to his beloved Timothy, while laboring under the premonition that his martyrdom was near at hand, Paul urges zeal and energy in the preaching of the gospel; for the shadows of the apostasy were gathering about the Church. His admonition is pathetic in its earnestness: "I charge thee therefore, before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."--(II Tim. 4:1-4.)

31. In addressing the Thessalonian saints, Paul warns them against the error strongly advocated by some that the day of Christ's second advent was then near at hand. It appears that deception was being practiced, and that even forgery was suspected, for the apostle instructs the people that they be not deceived "by word nor by letter as from us." The admonition is forceful: "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God."--(II Thess. 1:2-14.) We shall see how painfully literal has been the fulfilment of this prophecy in the blasphemous assumptions of the apostate church, centuries later.

32. The Apostle Peter prophesied in language so plain that none may fail to comprehend, concerning the heresies that would be preached as doctrine in the period of the apostasy; and he reminds the people that there were false teachers in olden times, even as there would be in times then future: "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not."--(II Peter 2:1-3. Read the entire chapter, noting the description of conditions existing in the world today.)

33. Jude, the brother of James, in his general epistle to the saints, reminds them of earlier warnings: "But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts."--(Jude 17, 18.)

34. John, who is called the Revelator, saw in vision the state of the world in the days then future. Describing the spirit of unrighteousness as a hideous beast, and its author, Satan, as the dragon, he says: "And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? * * * And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear."--(Rev. 13:4,6-9.)

35. Note another prophecy based on the vision of John the Revelator. Again referring to latter-day conditions he declares: "And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of water."--(Rev. 14:6, 7.)

36. While it is true that the scripture last quoted does not specifically predict the apostasy, the breaking up of the Church is treated as an event actually accomplished. The Revelator looked beyond the period of disruption and saw the brighter day of the restoration of the gospel,--a re-establishment of the Church through the ministry of an angel. It is illogical to assume that the gospel was to be brought to earth by a heavenly messenger if that gospel was still extant upon the earth. Equally unreasonable is it to say that a restoration or re-establishment of the Church of Christ would be necessary or possible had the Church continued with rightful succession of priesthood and power. If the gospel had to be brought again from the heavens, the gospel must have been taken from the earth. Thus the prophecy of a restoration is proof of an apostasy general and complete.

**Apostasy on the Western Hemisphere Predicted**.

37. In the preceding chapter it was shown that the Church of Christ was established by the Risen Lord among the Nephites of the western world. It was foreseen that the powers of evil would be permitted to prevail in the west as in the east. Consider the fateful words of the prophet Alma addressed to his son Helaman: "Behold, I perceive that this very people, the Nephites, according to the spirit of revelation which is in me, in four hundred years from the time that Jesus Christ shall manifest himself unto them, shall dwindle in unbelief; Yea, and then shall they see wars and pestilence, yea, famines and bloodshed, even until the people of Nephi shall become extinct; Yea, and this because they shall dwindle in unbelief, and fall into the works of darkness, and lasciviousness, and all manner of iniquities; yea, I say unto you, that because they shall sin against so great light and knowledge; yea, I say unto you, that from that day, even the fourth generation shall not pass away, before this great iniquity shall come."--(Alma 45:10-12.)

38. An earlier prophecy relating to the degradation of the surviving remnant of Lehi's descendants, was uttered by Nephi, as a result of a revelation communicated to him through angelic visitation. He thus describes his vision of the future: "I beheld and saw that the seed of my brethren did contend against my seed, according to the word of the angel; and because of the pride of my seed, and the temptations of the devil, I beheld that the seed of my brethren did overpower the people of my seed. And it came to pass that I beheld and saw the people of the seed of my brethren, that they had overcome my seed; and they went forth in multitudes upon the face of the land. And I saw them gathered together in multitudes; and I saw wars and rumors of wars among them; and in wars and rumors of wars, I saw many generations pass away. And the angel said unto me, Behold these shall dwindle in unbelief. And it came to pass that I beheld after they had dwindled in unbelief, they became a dark, and loathsome, and filthy people, full of idleness and all manner of abominations."--(I Nephi 12:19-23. For other Book of Mormon predictions of spiritual decline on the western continent, see II Nephi 27:1; read also II Nephi 26:19-22, and chapter 29.) The degraded state of the North American Indians,--descendants of a prophet-father--is a striking realization of this prophetic declaration.

39. The scriptures cited are sufficient to show that widespread apostasy from the Church was foreseen; that the corruption of the Church itself was likewise foreknown; and that on both hemispheres a general apostasy was foretold.

NOTES.

1. _The Church, Primitive and Restored_. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declares by its name a distinction from the Primitive Church as established by Christ and His early apostles. The essential designation of the restored Church is the Church of Jesus Christ; its authorized name is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the final phrase being added to distinguish the Church as established in the present dispensation from the Church as organized by the Savior during the period of His earthly ministry. This distinction is shown in one of our Articles of Faith: "We (the Church of today) believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church."

2. _Man's Free Agency_. The teachings of the restored Church respecting individual freedom of action are thus summarized: "The Church holds and teaches as a strictly scriptural doctrine, that man has inherited among the inalienable rights conferred upon him by his divine Father, absolute freedom to choose the good or the evil in life as he may elect. This right cannot be guarded with more jealous care than is bestowed upon it by God Himself; for in all His dealings with man, He has left the mortal creature free to choose and to act, with no semblance of compulsion or restraint, beyond the influences of paternal counsel and loving direction. True, He has given commandments, and has established statutes, with promises of blessings for compliance and dire penalties for infraction; but in the choice of these, God's children are untrammeled. In this respect, man is no less free than are the angels and the Gods, except as he has fettered himself with the bonds of sin, and forfeited his power of will and force of soul. The individual has a full measure of liberty to violate the laws of health, the requirements of nature, and the commandments of God in matters both temporal and spiritual, as he has to obey all such; in the one case he brings upon himself the sure penalties that belong to the broken law; as in the other he inherits the specific blessings and the added freedom that attend a law-abiding life. Obedience to law is the habit of the free man; 'tis the transgressor who fears the law, for he brings upon himself deprivation and restraint, not because of the law, which would have protected him in his freedom, but because of his rejection of law. The predominant attribute of justice, recognized as part of Divine nature, forbids the thought that man should receive promises of reward for righteousness, and threats of punishment of evil deeds, if he possessed no power of independent action. It is no more a part of God's plan to compel men to work righteousness, than it is His purpose to permit evil powers to force His children into sin. In the days of Eden, the first man had placed before him commandment and law, with an explanation of the penalty which would follow a violation of that law. No law could have been given him in righteousness, had he not been free to act for himself. 'Nevertheless, thou mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee; but remember that I forbid it,' said the Lord God to Adam. Concerning His dealings with the first patriarch of the race, God has declared in this day, 'Behold I gave unto him that he should be an agent unto himself.'" (The Author, "Articles of Faith," Lecture 3:1, 2.)

3. _The Testimony of Prophecy to the Apostasy_. "What is prophecy but history reversed? Nothing. Prophecy is a record of things before they transpire. History is a record of them after they have occurred; and of the two prophecy is more to be trusted for its accuracy than history: for the reason that it has for its source the unerring inspiration of Almighty God; while history,--except in the case of inspired historians--is colored by the favor or prejudice of the writer, depends for its exactness upon the point of view from which he looks upon the events; and is likely to be marred in a thousand ways by the influences surrounding him,--party considerations, national interest or prejudice; supposed influence upon present conditions and future prospects--all these things may interfere with history; but prophecy is free from such influences. Historians are self-constituted, or appointed by men; but prophets are chosen of God. Selected by divine wisdom, and illuminated by that Spirit which shows things that are to come, prophets have revealed to them so much of the future as God would have men to know, and the inspired writers record it for the enlightenment or warning of mankind, without the coloring or distortion so liable to mar the work of the historian. Thus Moses recorded what the history of Israel would be on condition of their obedience to God: and what it would be if they were disobedient. Israel was disobedient, and historians have exhausted their art in attempts to tell of their disobedience and suffering; but neither in vividness nor accuracy do the histories compare with the prophecy. So with the prophecy of Daniel in respect to the rise and succession of the great political powers that should dominate the earth, and the final triumph of the Kingdom of God. So with well-nigh all of the prophecies."--(B. H. Roberts, "A New Witness for God," pp. 113, 114.)

4. _Christ's Prediction of the Apostasy_. The forceful prophecy, couched in terms of vivid description, uttered by our Lord in response to inquiries by His disciples, has been the subject of diverse opinion and varied comment, particularly as regard the time to which the prediction refers. As recorded in the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, a significant sign of the progress of events to precede the second coming of Christ was stated as follows: "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Verse 14.) It is claimed by many that the "end" referred to in the passage quoted is not necessarily the close of the final dispensation, not what is commonly spoken of as the end of the world, but the closing up of the gospel dispensation then current; and in support of this interpretation it is urged that following the utterance quoted Christ proceeded to predict the calamities then awaiting Jerusalem. That during the period covered by the earthly ministry of the apostles, the gospel was preached in all the civilized nations of the Eastern hemisphere, is evident alike from scripture and from the uncanonical writings of repute relating to that period. Paul speaks of the Gospel as having been carried in his day to the world, and as having been preached to every creature under heaven (see Colos. 1:6, 23; compare Romans 10:18; see also Note 3, following chapter I of this work, page 15.)

In Joseph Smith's version of the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew the paragraph relating to the preaching of the gospel in all the world as one of the signs specified by Jesus Christ, is transposed so as to apply more directly to the modern or last dispensation. (See Pearl of Great Price, Writings of Joseph Smith, 1.) The scripture under consideration has direct application to the conditions characteristic of present times--the period now current and immediately precedent to the second advent of the Christ. This fact, however, does not necessarily nullify its application to the earlier period as well. History repeats itself in many instances in this, "the dispensation of the fulness of times;" indeed, the very name is expressive of a summarizing or gathering together of things past, and this involves recurrence of earlier conditions and re-enactment of laws. The prediction of world-wide evangelization is not the only instance of a general prophecy having more than a single limited horizon of fulfillment. In the apostolic period the gospel was carried to all nations known to the Lord's ministers; a similar work is in progress today, on a scale greatly exceeding that of the past, for the world, as measured by human occupancy, is vastly greater than of old.

5. _Scriptures Relating to the Apostasy_. That the application of the scriptures cited in the text is proof of the predicted apostasy is not peculiar to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is shown by the fact that these predictions are similarly interpreted by theologians of other churches. Thus, in his "Bible Commentary," Dr. Adam Clarke annotates Paul's admonition to Timothy as below. First note the passage: "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy;" etc. Dr. Clarke says:

"_In the latter times_: This does not necessarily imply the last ages of the world; but any times consequent (subsequent) to those in which the church then lived."

"_Depart from the faith_: They will apostatize from the faith, i. e. from Christianity, renouncing the whole system in effect by bringing in doctrines which render its essential truths null and void; or denying and denouncing such doctrines as are essential to Christianity as a system of salvation. A man may hold all the truths of Christianity, and yet render them of none effect, by holding other doctrines, which counteract their influence; or he may apostatize by denying some essential doctrine, though he bring in nothing heterodox."

"_Speaking lies in hypocrisy_: Persons pretending not only to divine inspiration, but also to extraordinary degrees of holiness, self-denial, mortification, etc., in order to credit the lies and false doctrines which they taught. Multitudes of lies were framed concerning miracles wrought by the relics of departed saints as they were termed."